Wayne State President defends lengthy contract 'targeted' in political right-to-work debate

Wayne State University President Allan Gilmour speaks with reporters at the Michigan Capitol on March 12, 2013.Jonathan Oosting | MLive.com

LANSING, MI -- Wayne State University President Allan Gilmour today defended a new eight-year faculty contract and expressed concern that the agreement has been "targeted" in a political debate over the state's new right-to-work law.

"This contract is not the result of political maneuvering," Gimour said during testimony before a House appropriations subcommittee on higher education. "It is the result of hard work toward an agreement that is mutually satisfactory."

Republican lawmakers, including committee chair Al Pscholka of Stevensville , have raised concerns about new contracts at Wayne State and local school districts that include lengthy "union security clauses" requiring staff to pay dues or administrative fees.

Michigan's controversial right-to-work law prohibits such agreements, but it does not take effect until the end of the month and does not apply to contracts negotiated before that time.

Pscholka has proposed a new "fiduciary responsibility" performance metric for university-based incentive funding that could penalize Wayne State and other universities that negotiate similar union contracts before the new law takes effect.

"I'm more interested in protecting the interest of students, parents and taxpayers than special interest groups," Pscholka said Monday, denying accusations that he is attempting to intimidate university officials. "If they could show they saved taxpayers dollars, that would be fine. I don't think anybody's against making these contracts if taxpayers actually benefit."

Gilmour said the proposed performance metric could cost Wayne State up to $7 million a year in state funding, but he defended the terms of the contract as a good deal for taxpayers, students and faculty. The pending implementation of right-to-work, he said, gave negotiations a sense of urgency and provided the university with a bargaining chip.

"We did not start this," Gilmour told reporters after the hearing. "The union came to us looking for union security, as you could imagine, and we had a lever. So we straightened out a lot of things. They got what they wanted. We got what we wanted. And I don't see that we're wasting taxpayer money."

The recently ratified contract provides faculty with an annual raise of 2.5 percent, half of which is merit-based. The annual wage increases are lower than previous rates, Gilmour said, and the contract provides the university with three opportunities to reconsider them and adjust downward if necessary.

The new agreement also includes a higher co-pay for faculty health insurance and sets up a new performance review system that Gilmour said has been difficult to achieve in the past negotiations due to tenure rules.

"I think there are some members of the legislature that believe that although right-to-work legally does not take effect until the end of March that people should not take advantage of that fact," he said.

McMillin has asked administrators and union officials from Wayne State, Taylor Public Schools and the Warren Consolidated Schools to testify before his oversight committee. Taylor officials rejected his invitation, and when Gilmour turned down an initial offer because the contract had not yet been ratified, McMillin decided to show up at today's appropriations subcommittee.

"We're on the cusp of dramatic changes in higher education," McMillin said, questioning the appropriateness of an eight-year contract. "In five years, due to innovation, technology and strong competition, I wouldn't be surprised if tuition doesn't drop significantly. So flexibility is what's going to be needed in the future, not locking in long-term contracts. The question I propose is: Should such behavior as we've seen from Wayne State University be rewarded? I would suggest not."

Democratic House Majority Leader Tim Greimel on Monday called on Pscholka and Oversight Chairman Tom McMillin to end inquiries into school and university contracts, suggesting they were using "McCarthyism-like tactics" in an attempt to enforce right-to-work before it took effect.

Pointing out that officials at Ferris State University pulled a contract offer due to fears that it could jeopardize state appropriations, Greimel also urged Gov. Rick Snyder and House Speak Jase Bolger to "denounce" the alleged intimidation.

Both Republican leaders, however, responded by defending the right of lawmakers to question university and school officials about the lengthy agreements.

"The governor believes it's fair for legislators to bring up questions and concerns about whether there are real significant economic benefits to these lengthy contracts," said spokesman Kurt Weiss. "As a separate branch of government, the Legislature makes their own decisions about the best way to obtain the information they need to make informed decisions."

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.